Machine and process for knitting plaited fabric



March 6, 1928. 1,661,427

W. L. HOUSEMAN MACHINE AND PROCESS FOR KNITTING PLAITED FABRIC Filed Feb. 19. 1927 s Sheets-Sheeti March 6, 1928. v 1,661,427

W. L. HOUSEMAN MACHINE AND PROCESS FOR KNITTING PLAITED FABRIC Filed Feb. 19. 1927 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 March 6, 1928 I LfifiiAL-Y'? W. L. HOUSEMAN MACHINE AND PROCESS FOR KNITTING PLAITED FABRIC Filed Feb. 19, 1927 5 Sheets-5heet IV/TA ESJ." v W H /A 1 auscman W' W 5y 6m a/M f Patented Mar. 6, 1928.

UNITED STATES 1,661,427. PATENT OFFICE.

WILBUR L. HOUSEHAN, OF PHILADELPHIA, IPENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNGR '10 STAND- ARD-TBUMP BROS. MACHINE COMPANY, OF. WILMINGTON. DELAWARE, A COB;-

PORATION OI DELAWARE.

MACHINE AND PROCESS FOR KNITTING PLAITED FABRIC.

Application filed February 19, 1927. Serial No. 189,460.

The object of my invention is to produce stri es and designs in knitted fabric, particu arly hosiery, knit from two threads to produce a plaited fabric, by reversing the position of the threads in thefabrlc along certain wales for. vapying-predeterminable numbers of courses.

In the knitting of stockings with vertical stripes or fi ured designs, it is known to l accomplish tie result by knitting a plaited fabric of two-threads-whieh may be conveniently called the body or backing thread or yarn and the plaiting thread or yarnimposing a differential tension on the two threads so as to cause one of themsay the plaiting threadto normally appear on the face of the fabric, and to either cause certain needles to escape engagement with the plaiting thread, or to reverse the plaiting 0 thread at such needles, the result being, in the first case, to cause such needles to knit in the body thread only, and, in the second case, to cause such needles to knit in the body thread on the face of the fabric. In

either case, a stripe is formed along the wales of the fabric knit by such needles,

In knitting plaited fabric it is customary to feed the plaiting thread toward the needles in a position alongside of the body thread and closest to the needles and to impose a greater tension on the plaitingthread than on the body thread so that as the hook of a needle engages the threads and ulls them down over the sinkers the plaiting thread, being under the greater tension, will hug close to the shank of the needle and displace the body thread toward the outside of the needle cylinder, thereby, due to the fabric at the knitting point being inside out, causing the plaiting thread, n the subsequent operation of needle and sinker, to appear on the face of the fabric. 7

It is known to provide a special device, which either supplements .or' replaces the regular sinker, and which, in an in and out movement thereof, cooperates with the needle to reverse the position of the threads; the special deviceeitherpositively pushing one thread over the other so as to reverse their position, or the greatertension on the plaiting thread causingcit be drawn by. the sinker toward theoutside of the needle cylinder while the body threadis displaced toward the shank of the needle; thereby, in the subsequent part of the looping or stitchforming operation (which does not differ from the operation in knitting the old plain plaited fabric) causing the body thread to appear on the face of the fabric.

In my invention, in order to knit a normal fabric, the plaiting thread, upon which the greater tension is imposed, is fed toward the needles outside the body thread in such relation that, due to the engagement of the threads with the shanks of one or more needles and to the greater tension imposed on the plaiting thread the position of the threads will be reversed before their on agement with the hook of the next need e of the series, the plaiting thread therefore extending against the shank of the last named needle while the body thread is nearest the outside of the needle cylinder. The fabric at the knitting point bein inside out, the wale knit by the last named needle will have the plaiting thread on the outside of the fabric. In knitting. a normal fabric, all the needles and sinkers so operate as to effect the mode of operation described.

In order to produce a stri of any length, the mode of operation is a tered by lifting the two threads as they pass toward the needles so that they will be en aged bywthe hook of a needle back of (wit relation to the direction of the travel of the needles) the needle which, in normal knitting, would engage them and also so that the will be engaged b such needle before t ey have reversed t e ositions which they occupy as they pass rom the yarn feed, therefore causing the, plaiting thread to remain on the outside position of the bod thread, and therefore causing the wale knit by. this needle to have-the bod thread on the outside of the fabric. he lifting of the threads, as described, has, also, the advan.

tage of both permitting and delaying the reversal of the threads. By delaying the reversal-of the threads, it is further insured that the striping needle will engage the threads before they reverse (although this delayed reversal is not essential to the operation of theinvention'). By permitting thereversal of the threads beyond the point of their engagement with the striping needle, it is insured that the needles in advance (with relation to the direction of travel of the needles) of the striping needle will knit in the normal way.

It will thus be understood that the operation of my invention involves a reversal of the threads and, in normal knitting, the engagement of a needle hook with the threads after they are reversed, and, in reverse plaiting, the engagement of a needle hook with the threads before they have assumed the reversed position.

My invention has the advantage of extreme simplicity in the following respects. It is not necessary to provide special sinkers with'special thread engaging means nor to provide contrivances, additional to the regular sinkers, having special thread engaging means. The sinkers are all operated radially in the same way that they are operated in knitting ordinary plain plaited fabric. To produce reverse plaiting. no special mechanism, such as sinkers of special configuration, or additional sinkers., is required to reverse the threads in order to bring them into a position opposite to that to which they are normally brought within the needle hook. To produce a striped effect, all that it is necessary to do is to so lift or otherwise.

deflect the threads that they will engage the needle row at a point in the circumference of needle rotation back of the point at which they would engage if they were not lifted,

or so that they will engage a needle before theirlateral relationship is reversed. By predetermining the distance of the lift, the threads, in their uncrossed position, may be caused to engage a plurality of needles back of the needle which they would engage if they were not lifted, thereby producing a two-Wale stripe; or the same effect may be produced by lifting the threads at points between successive pairs of needles.

The lifting of the threads may be conveniently effected by tilting a sinker upwardly as disclosed in the Wilbur L. Houseman Patent No. 1,534,785, dated April 21, 1925; the sinker, in other respects, being operated in the regular way and performing the usual functions in the regular way. In fact, the sinker that is thus tilted up in order to lift the threads is of the same construction as the other sinkers and is moved in and out by the regular sinkeroperating cams in the same way that the other sinkers are moved in and out; except it should be so differently formed at its outer end that it may be operated by a special tilting cam that will not operate the other sinkers. By moving this special tilting cam into and out of operative position at different courses of knitting, a stripe may be made of any length. This permits of an indefinite variation of design.

In the drawings, which show mechanism particularly adapted to embody and carry out my invention:

Fig. 1 is a much enlarged perspective view of a series of needles and sinkers. with one of the sinkers operating to lift the threads, before their reversal, to cause them to be engaged, in reverse plaiting position, with a striping needle.

Fig. 2 is a side view of a sinker and an adjacent needle, showing the position of the threads when the needle hook engages them in normal plaiting.

Fig. 3 is a side view of the same elements showing the position of the threads when the needle hook engages them in reverse plaiting.

Fig. 4 is a diagrannnatic plan view of the parts shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a diagrannnatic elevationnl view of the parts shown in Figs. 1 and 4.

Fig. 6 is a view, similar to Fig. 5, at a slightly later stage of the operation.

Figs. 7. 8, 9 and 1d are side views of certain sinkers and actuating cams.

Figs. 11 and 12 are vertical sections through the needle cylinder; Fig. 11 showing a wale of fabric being fed from a needle with the plaiting thread on the outside and Fig. 12 showing a wale of fabric being fed from a needle with the plaiting thread on the inside.

Fig. 13 is a partial plan view of the knitting head and the sinker-tilting cam.

Fig. 14 is a front elevation of the sinkertilting cam.

' For convenience I shall desi nate the thread that normally appears on t e outside of the fabric, the laitlng thread and the thread that normal y appears on the inside of the fabric the body thread; these terms being used for convenience and being intended to cover any two threads that are so operated that one or the other thread, in one or any number of wales, will appear on the face of the fabric. In speaking of a thread it should be understood that it is.

intended to comprehend more than one thread if they are manipulated as a single thread.

The plaiting thread 10 is fed toward the needles from a point outside the point from which the body yarn 20 is fed to the needles. Both threads (which may be fed from a yarn finger or fingers) pass under the hooks of certain of the needles as the latter are being moved down by their actuating cams, and engage the shanks of such needle and, due to the greater tension imposed on thread 10, the latter displaces thread '20 outwardly. In normal knitting (which is intended, in this description, to imply the production of a fabric with thread 10 on the outside) all the siukcrs (L, a, etc. and b are at the same level and the threads will cross, that is,

reverse their relative inside and outside posiiions, at about the point :1:, Figs. 4, 5 and 6. This condition is intended to be shown in Fig. 2. l a

In Figure 5, the threads shown in dotted lines approximately illustrate their position in normal knitting, from which it will be clear that the threads will escape engagement with the hook of needle d until needle I nearly reaches the position of needle 0, when needle (5 will, like needle 0, engage the threads after they cross and, like needle 0 will knit a wale of normal plaited fabric.-

This relative position of the threads is shown in Fig. 2. It should be understood that once the needle hook engages the threads, theloopingGFstitch-forming operalion, effected by the conjoint action of needle and sinker, may be, and, in my way of practicing the invention, is, identical with the old and well known operation of knitting plain plait-ed fabric. i

When it is desired to form a stripe in the fabric along the Wale knit by (say) needle d, the sinker b behind (relative to the direction of rotation of the needlecylinder) needle (13 will be tilted so as to raise its inner end, as shown in Figs. 1 and 5. Thereby sinker engages and lifts threads 10 and 11 sufficiently high to cause them to be engaged by the hook of the needle before the threads cross.

The crossing point of the threadsis also advanced somewhat (approximately from.

positionae to position y) so as to still further insure that needle d will engage the threads before they cross. The relative position of the threads is shown in Fig. 3. The subsequent looping or stitch-formin operation, cilected by the conjoint action 0 needle and sinker, is the same as when needle d engages the threads after they cross, that is," is the same as in the old and well known operation of knitting plaited fabric, the only difference being that, because of the difierent positioning of the two 'threads'when the are engaged by the needle hook, the wa e of fabric knitted by needle d has the body or backing thread 20 on the outside.

A moment after the needles. sinkers and threads are in the posit-ion'shown in Fig. 5, the needles have descended a substantial distance and the sinker b has started to move down. Temporarily, the hook of the needle,

0, following needle (I, engages the threads, but a moment later the sinker b, which moves down more rapidly than the needles, reaches its normal lower position and the threads are freed from the hook of needle 0 and are not engaged thereby until needle nearly reaches the position occupied by needle 0 in Fig. 6, at which point needle 0" engages the threads after they cross.

All sinker-s, a and b, may have, and in the preferred way of practicing the invention the do have, the ordinary configuration. They all have the same usualin and out movement and in that movement cooperate with the needles and threads in the old and well known way. The only difference between sinkcrs a. and b is that the latter are adapted 10 be tilted into the posit-ion shown in Figs. 1, 3, 5 and 6, as in the hereinbefore specified patent issued to me. Fig. 7 shows a sinker a'in all rccpects of ordinary construction, the same having a cam roove 0 whereby it is reciprocable laterally, 111 the usual way, by means of a cam-way f, Fig. 13. The special sinker 6, Figs. 8 and 10, is of the same construction as a regular sinker 0. except that its outer end, or tail, is provided with an inclined edge g, to permit tilting. and with a special tail piece h which extends suilicient y highto enable it to be engaged by a cam 2" (Figs. 7 to 10 inclusive) when the latter is moved in from the position shown in Fig. 8 to the position shown in Fig. 10. When the cam is in the latter position, it continues to clear the tail pieces of the regular sinkers a, engages the tail piece of a special sinker b, tilting up the inner or thread-engaging end of the sinker, as shown in Figs. 1, 3, 5 andfi.

1-.The cam i for actuating the special sinkers may be carried on the end of a lever j, actuable by a spring it that tends to move and maintain the cam in the outer position shown in Figs. 7 and 8, but which is movable by a lever m into either of the positions shown in Figs. 9 and 10. Lever m may be operated from the pattern mechanism with which all machines of this character are equipped, through connections not shown, that may be readily provided by a skilled designer.

It is clear that lever m may be moved into position to bring cam 2' into operative relation with special sinkers during the knitting of any predetermined number of courses, so that a vertical stripe of any predetermined length may be produced in the fabric.

As is well understood, one-half the needles knit the rear half of a stocking leg and alsQ the bottom of the foot. It is desirable that the striping needles shall produce stripes on the back of' the stocking leg but not on the bottom of the foot. It is desirable. however, to produce stripes both on the top of tail ieces of both sinkers b and 0 are engage by cam i when it is moved all the way in, as shown in Fig. 10. The cam z is moved to such position during the knitting of the leg of the stocking. When, however, the cam i is moved only part way in. as shown in Fig. 9, it engages the tail pieces 2 of sinkers 0, but not the tail pieces I: of sinkers l). The ram 2' is moved to this intermediate position during the knitting of the foot of the stocking.

\Vhcre, in the claims, differential tension" is specified, I do not mean to exclude a case where substantially no tension at all is imposed on one of the threads.

It should be understood that, in my invention, differential tension is relied upon, as heretofore, to position the threads to effect normal plaiting. The positioning of the threads to effect reverse plaiting is, however, dependent on leading the threads toward the needles in relative positions (in plan view) opposite to that which it is desired they shall occupy. in normal plaiting, at the beginning of the looping or stitchforming operation and in causing the needle hook to engage the threads before the differential tension becomes operative to position the threads (reverse them) for normal plaitin After the threads are once engaged fry the needle hook, the differential tension becomes immaterial; the way in which the threads are knitted into the fabric depending solely on their relative positions prior to the looping or stitch-forming operation. Thus, in Figs. 2 and 3, which illustrate the point at which the looping or stitchforming operation begins, needles 0 and (l knit the threads into the fabric oppositely because the threads are positioned oppositely and not because a greater tension is imposed on one thread than on the other. Differential tension determines the position of the threads in Fig. 2, but it has not determined the position of the threads in Fig. 3.

A characteristic feature of the preferred embodiment of the invention is that no special mechanism is necessary to manipulate the threads to produce reverse plaiting, this being capable of being effected merely by imparting a special movement to a sinker of regular configuration.

Another notable feature of the preferred embodiment of the invention is that the threads are positioned. both for normal plaiting and reverse plaiting. before the looping or stitch-forming operation begins.

The principal feature of the invention is probably the operation whereby the threads are initially guided to the needles in the relationship opposite to that which they must assume in normal plaiting (which is believed to be novel per se), which causes them to cross, and in predetermining normal plaiting or reverse plaiting by the simple expedientof causing the needle to operatively engage the needle respectively after or before the threads cross. It is by means o l' this 0 ieration that maximum simplicity in the mechanism and process is attained.

The process is not, of course. limited to the particular mechanism herein described for carrying it out, nor are the claims to mechanism limited to any details of structure not expressed in the claims. Nor is the invention limited to but two constructions of special sinkers, such as I) and 0, with but two types of tail pieces It aml nor to a cam i having but three radial positions: it being contemplated to provide different sinkers with any desired variable numbers or widths of tail pieces and to provide any desired number of different cams 1'. or for any desired number of different radial positions of the same cam 2', whereby the. stripes produced by different striping needles may be made of different desired lengths, thereby enabling the reduction of a great variety of figures anr designs.

Having now fully described my invention, what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. The process of producing plural thread plaited knitted fabric with one thread on the face of the fabric in one part thereof and the other thread on the face of the fabric in another part thereof, which comprises imposing a differential tension on the threads and feeding them to the needles in'such relation that they reverse their positions. and predetermining the relative positions of the threads in the fabric by causing a needle to engage the threads ahead of or behind the point at which the threads reverse their positions, thereby so positioning the threads in the needle hook that after the stitch drawing movement of the needle. one or the other thread, dependent on whether the threads are or are not crossed when engaged by the needle, will be positioned on the face of the fabric.

2. The rocess of producing plural thread plaited fa ric with one thread on the face thereof in one part thereof and the other thread on the face of the fabric in another part thereof, which comprises imposing a differential tension on the threads and feeding them to the needles in such relation that they reverse their positions, and causing one or more needles to operatively engage the threads before the threads reverse their positions by displacing the threads from their normal position, thereby so positioning the threads in the needle hook that after the stitch drawing movement of such needle or needles the threads will be positioned in the fabric in reverse position to that which they will occupy when a needle engages the threads after they cross.

3. The process of producing stripes in side, the engagement of'the threads with the needle shanks effecting, in normal knitting, a crossing of the threads before their engagement with the needle hooks, and at intervals lifting the threads, in the reach thereof ex-'- tending toward the needles, above their normal level, thereby causing them to be en gaged by .the hook of a needle before they cross and so positioning such threads in the needle hook that after the stitch drawing movement of the needle therelative position of the threads in the fabric will be the reverse of their relative positions innormal knitting. I

4. The process of producing stripes in plural thread plaitcd knitted fabric which comprises imposing a differential tension on the threads and feeding the threads toward the row of needles with the thread on which the greater tension is imposed on the outside the engagement of the threads with the needle shanks effecting, in normal knitting, a crossing of the threads-before their engagement with the needle hooks, and at in tervals manipulating the threads to advance the oint in the circumference of needle rotation at which the threads cross and cansing them to be engaged b one or more needles before they cross, tiereby so positioning such threads in the needle hook that after the stitch drawing movement of such needle or needles the relative position of the threads in the fabric will be the reverse of their positions in normal knitting.

5. In a machine for knitting plural thread plaited fabric, the combination with the needles, of a yarn feed adapted to so feed the threads to certain needles that in the reach of two threads under differential tension between the yarn feed and such needles the threads cross in a lateral direction, and means to effect operative engagement of one or more needles with the threads before the point at which the threads cross.

6. In a machine for knitting plural thread plaited fabric, the combination with the needles, of a yarn feed adapted to so feed the threads to certain needles that in the reach of two threads under differential tension between the yarn feed and such needles the threads cross in a lateral direction, and means to intermittently displace the threads from their normal positions and thereby bring them into operative engagement with one or more of the needles before the point at which the threads cross;

7. In a machine for knitting plural thread plaited fabric, the combination with needles and sinkers alternating therewith, of means to so feed two threads under difierential tension to the .needles that they reverse their relative lateral positions before engagement with the hooks of certain needles, and means to move one or more of the sinkers into engagement with the threads to causethe hook or hooks of one or more of the needles to engage the threads before they reverse their lateral positions.

8. In a machine for knitting plural thread plaitcd fabric, the combination with needles and sinkers alternating therewith, of means to so feed two threads under differential tension to the needles that they reverse their relative lateral positions before engagement with the hooks of certain needles, and means to moveone or more of the sinkers to cause them to so engage the threads as to advance the point, in the line of travel of the needles,-

at which the threads cross and cause one or more of the needles to engage the threads before they reverse their lateral positions.

9. In a machine for knitting plural thread plaiting fabric, the combination with the needles, of sinkers having similar thread engaging configurations, means to so feed two threads under differential tension to the needles that they reverse their relative lateral positions, means to impart the same in and out movement to all the sinkers, and means to impart to certain of the sinkers a special movementother than their in and out movement to cause needles adjacent thereto to operatively engage the threads before they reverse their lateral positions.

10. In a machine for knitting plural thread )laited fabric, the combination with the nee les, of sinkers alternating therewith, and means to so feed two threads under differential tension to the needles that they will engage the hooks of all of certain of the needles when the threads are in one relative position, all the sinkers extending radially and provided with similar thread engaging ends, a cam with which all the sinkers are adapted to similarly engage and which is adapted to impart similar in and out movements to all the sinkers, and means to raise the thread engaging ends of one or more of the sinkers to cause the threads to be fed to the hooks of one or more needles in a relative position the reverse of that hereinbefore specified.

11. In a machine for knitting plural thread plaited fabric, the combination with the needles, of sinkers alternating therewith, and means to so feed two threads an der differential tension to the needles that they will cross one another before engaging the hooks of certain of the needles, all the sinkers extending radially and provided with similar. thread engaging ends. cam mechanism adapted to im art similar radial movements to all the sin ers, one. or more of the sinkers bein tiltable -to raise its cam engaging member, and a cam movable other needles to engage the threads before radially into and out of position to cause it they cross. to engage said member and tilt the sinker, In testimony of which invention, I have 10 the tilted sinker being adapted to engage hereunto set my hand, at Philadelphia,

5 and deflect the threads from their normal Penna., on this 18th day of February, 1927.

direction of extension toward the needles and thereby cause the books of one or more WILBUR L. HOUSEMAN. 

